Let’s say you have done it all and have some understanding now of your major, it is time to find a job. Your resume and your “experience”(again this could be home lab work, school projects or a project of your own that shows you are capable of this job) are the main focus that will get you there. Oh and one major thing, NETWORKING! Just like a computer network sharing information between them. It is a good idea to do some networking between your friends, family, colleagues, etc. for any recommendations if they have any, this is the biggest help you can get to land a job in the field you want. Believe in yourself and your skills, just apply, apply and apply. In the beginning don’t be surprised if it can get a bit frustrating to even get a response back or when you do it’s a nice ‘rejection’ letter. It sure sounds rough, but that is life nothing is easy and you need to be stubborn as a mule! Keep going!
I wish i can help and put tips on how to get a job on every title out there, ( reason for this blog, to get us all together to put in our 2 cents on how to) unfortunately i don’t have the answer to it all. So this is where i can tell you my story of how i was able to join the cult. I love technology and always have, and wish i could say i was geeking out on tech ever since i could remember. So no.. i did not have my own laptop till i was a teen and did not have many other things to hack around with. One thing i was good at was just being curious, and wanting to learn almost everything that was interesting to me. I mean when it comes to doing something i enjoy and figuring out the ins and outs, i would be stuck for days and weeks being laser focused! Still I hate to say it but I was never set on one thing and so it took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do. Every time “I.T” came up i used to think the same as what i mentioned in the “Is this I.T. thing for me?” page. Well in short and to the point; my girlfriend was pregnant, i did not have a dime in my name and was working like crazy while trying to figure things out. So i had this physical security job at a Data center where all these guys had an actual career job with 401k, benefits and decent pay ( no offense to security, there are high paying security jobs both armed/unarmed just wasn’t my thing..) so i did what i mentioned in “Time to Grind”
I was a bit stuck on whether to be an electrician, construction or armed security. I did my homework on it all and then, I looked into I.T. i mean i worked securing a “Data Center” why did i not think about it? Not sure, not really the brightest crayon in the box here. I started to look more into it and looked into a few schools as I felt I didn’t really have the time or patience ( I was not very accountable to myself to learn on my own). So fast forward a bit I was halfway through my degree when I needed some actual experience and the time to finally step in the door of my future. Working on a Associates degree of Computer Science (focus on Network Security = schools are always up selling Cyber Security, Network Security) i wanted to be a Computer Technician, i felt i was handy enough and it just came easier for me to do. I had applied to several companies hoping to get a crack at a Cyber Security gig, with no luck. My situation was a bit different since i did not have the luxury to take a non paid internship while having more responsibilities at home, with school.. Life was definitely throwing me lemons as we were stuck for one point driving one car everywhere it was even harder to get a job far from home. So i started to do some networking and got a hold of a temp agency that would help me find a job. There are plenty out there, just google temp agency and a bunch of “staffing agencies” will pop right up. A team needed more people for their work and it opened up the doors to my new beginning ;). So the rest as they say is history, i could go on about the details but i think i will keep it focused on what can help you all out there.
